Rwanda National Police

Taxi motor operators have been urged to strengthen their cooperation with security organs to fight and prevent criminality especially theft, which is partly facilitated or orchestrated by some of their own members.

 The call was made by various officials during a meeting with thousands of motorcyclists operating in the City of Kigali, held at Kicukiro stadium on November 23.

 The meeting focused on streamlining the profession of commercial motorcyclists and to woo them to be active in community policing initiatives.

 The meeting followed theft of motorcycles and speculations of “killings of motorcyclists” which Rwanda National Police said were hyper-reported.

 Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Elias Mwesigye, the Central Regional Police Commander, urged the motorcyclists to refrain from such “false speculations” and instead join security organs to fight even the few cases that still exist.

 “Two motorcyclists were killed but not eight as some of you are meant to believe, and two main suspects have so far been arrested. Killing or injuring one person, or even stealing one motorcycle cannot be tolerated, these evil motives and actions should be fought by us all through vigilance and timely information sharing,” ACP Mwesigye told the motorcyclists.   

 It was a moment of joy as the motorcyclists cheered as Police also paraded eight suspects, who were arrested in  crackdown operations against motorcycle theft.

 “These suspects were arrested with the help of some of you, and this partnership should continue to thrive to ensure that such incidents don’t happen again. You are in the active age – youth – that should serve as a powerhouse to sustainable security and development. Your business should be done in a secure atmosphere either on roads on communities.”

 Those arrested include sellers of disassembled motorcycle spare parts in Nyabugogo, those who were connecting thieves to potential buyers , the supplier of tablets that would be put in drinks to targeted motorcyclists to make them unconscious, and those who were using master-keys to steal motorcycles.

 One of the suspects, Eliezer alias Puff Daddy, who was connecting thieves to buyers confessed to the crime before thousands of motorcyclists, who called for “tougher punitive measures against such individuals who try to threaten their business.”

 According to Celestin Ntaganzwa, the President of FERWACOTAMO, a federation of motorcycle cooperatives in Rwanda, out of ten motorcycles stolen in the last two months, six have been recovered and handed over to their rightful owners.

 ACP Mwesigye further warned motorcyclists against aiding criminality by transporting thieves or stolen items, and urged them to respect traffic rules.

 “There is safety and security in Rwanda, but that’s not enough if we still see such cases of security breach.  Fighting such is not only the role of security organs but the responsibility of everyone.”

 Paul Jules Ndamage, the mayor of Kicukiro, who lauded the existing partnership between Police and the public, also warned the motorcyclists against snatching items from their passengers.

 In case they suspect a passenger to be orchestrating a criminal act, Ndamage advised them to stop at a safer place like close to a  security officers on patrol or call police.

 “When you see Police officers standing on the roadside, they are there to ensure the safety of us all, so you should respect that. To make money, you need life first, so don’t be a problem or contribute to it, instead be a solution by sharing timely information on suspicious people,” Mayor Ndamage said.

 CSP Celestin Twahirwa emphasized the role of everyone to fight all sorts of criminality through community policing initiatives.

Several motorcyclists, who spoke, committed themselves to fighting all sorts of crimes.

 “Reporting a criminal or an illegal act is the responsibility of us all because we  are  that striving  for the best of our families and the country. Those who are targeted by criminals are our fellow motorcyclists, our friends, relatives but on top of that, fellow Rwandans. This leaves us with a challenge and task  to protect our families, our profession and our communities,” Vestine Mukashema, a female motorcyclist told colleagues.

There are about 19, 520 motorcyclists organized in 220 cooperatives in Rwanda, with about 11, 500 of them operating in the City of Kigali.